Amphitrite the Bubbly

by Joan Holub

  Splash! As soon as he dunked her, Amphitrite felt fine. Shifting back to her mermaid form, she dove deep in a spiral, then returned to him, breaking the surface of the water. She gave a hard flip of her tail, splashing him.

  “Fizzy! Feels good to be in the water again.” Although she’d rather live on land, she’d never want to give this up completely.

  He looked at her, his expression still concerned. Before he could say anything, however, two godboys flew past on their way back to MOA. Makhai tossed Poseidon’s trident down to him. “Hey, your drippyness! Found this lying on the battlefield. Did you forget anything else? Your tubby toys and flippers maybe?” he teased.

  Kydoimos laughed and glanced at Amphitrite as he hooked a thumb at Poseidon. “He’s famous for them around bath time back in the dorm.”

  Amphitrite was dumbfounded. Her sort-of-crush played with tubby toys? And wore flippers in the bathtub? When she noticed that Poseidon’s turquoise cheeks had blushed apple red, she felt an immediate desire to defend him. Because so what if he liked floaties? He probably missed the sea, and they were reminders. No way she’d let these mean guys embarrass him because of that!

  “That’s so adorable!” she exclaimed, clasping her hands together. “My dad has tons of tubby toys too!” she fibbed. “And he’s Nereus Of-the-Sea, the most respected merman around.”

  At this, Makhai and Kydoimos looked taken aback.

  “It’s a mer thing. You wouldn’t understand,” Amphitrite told them. She smiled at the two mean boys. “But maybe having a few tubby toys of your own would improve your dispositions, since they’re so much fun. Think about it.”

  After they departed, obviously disappointed that their teasing had missed its mark, she and Poseidon both burst out laughing. Once their giggles died down, a small silence fell.

  Amphitrite looked out to sea. “Well, I guess I’d better get home,” she began.

  “Wait!” someone called. It was Athena. She was running toward them across the shore! Heracles was behind her, carrying the omphalos in his muscled arms. Only someone with his strength could have carried a three-foot stone egg so easily. Behind them, Zeus’s chariot was parked in the white sand, waiting.

  Amphitrite swam to a large dark rock along the shore and pulled herself out of the water. Poseidon did the same. Quickly, she shifted back to her land legs. She was really getting the hang of the shifting spell. At least that was something.

  As the two waded from the rock to shore, Athena and Heracles hurried over to join them. When the girls met, Athena held out the pearl to her. “My dad said to return this to you. We checked carefully, and none of the egg’s pearls are missing.”

  “What? That can’t be!” said Amphitrite, shaking her head. “It’s the exact same color as the other pearls on the omphalos. And where else would this pearl have come from?”

  Then she straightened as sudden excitement zipped through her, along with a whole new thought. Could what she was thinking possibly be true?

  She looked at Zeus, who had come over to see what was going on. “Um, can we try something?” Quickly she explained what she wanted to do. Zeus was reluctant at first. The omphalos was, after all, a very important artifact not to be trifled with. Eventually, he agreed, however. Slowly, Amphitrite reached out and plucked another pearl from the omphalos. Pop! Immediately, a new one appeared in its place. Everyone gasped. Even the King of the Gods was surprised.

  “I guess that’s the omphalos’s way of making sure it will always have the pearls it needs to make prophecies and keep the world from spinning out of control,” said Zeus. Then he grinned big. “Good to know!”

  Amphitrite gazed at him with hope in her eyes. “Do you think . . . I mean, would it be okay for me to take more pearls from it?” she dared to ask. “Like, maybe fifty of them in all? You see, that first pearl kept me from getting landsick, and I’d like to share that gift with my sisters.”

  “Hmm. Well,” said Zeus.

  “Please, Dad?” said Athena. “She helped us find the herb.”

  “All right,” said Zeus after a minute. “I owe your dad, anyway. Nereus is a good guy.”

  Quickly, the two girls began plucking pearls from the egg. Each time one was removed, a new one popped up to take its place. Once they had enough, Zeus set the omphalos back in his chariot and soared off to return the stone egg to Delphi.

  After scouting along the shore, Heracles found an empty clamshell to safely store Amphitrite’s small pile of pearls, and Athena quickly wove her a seaweed belt to secure the shell at her waist on her trip home. Meanwhile, Poseidon found a long strand of sea-grass and strung the pearl she’d discovered back at Delphi into a necklace she could wear.

  At long last, Athena gave Amphitrite a farewell hug. Then the goddess offered her hand to Heracles, so he could fly with her.

  “See you back at the Academy, Poseidon. Bye, Thetis. Nice meeting you.”

  Thetis. Amphitrite knew she should have said something right then. Told them the truth about who she was. But she let the moment pass. And then Athena and Heracles were gone, leaving only her and Poseidon.

  12

  Confidence

  Poseidon

  POSEIDON WALKED THETIS INTO THE waves. “Guess this is good-bye, then, huh?” he said as water swirled around their feet.

  Thetis nodded. “Thanks for everything. It’s been an adventure, and I’m really glad to have these pearls to take home to my sisters.”

  “Yeah, it was cool hanging out,” he told her nonchalantly. She flicked him a glance, but he didn’t know what else to say.

  “Okay, then. Bye,” she said after a silence. Shifting back to her mermaid form, she gave a swish of her tail and dove. Poseidon watched her swim away, her golden scales gleaming brightly a few feet below the water’s surface. An uncertain feeling filled him.

  Hearing a series of clicks and whistles, he turned to see Delphinius. He was in dolphin form and had suddenly popped up from the sea.

  “You just going to let her go?” Delphinius asked in clicks and whistles.

  “Eavesdrop much?” said Poseidon, raising an eyebrow. “Where have you been, anyway?”

  Delphinius transformed himself into a boy again, then stood and shrugged. “Around. Long enough to see you totally wimp out with Thetis.”

  “Huh? That’s not true. I was just—”

  “Where’s your confidence, god-dude?” Delphinius butted in. “You seem to have loads of it except when it comes to her. Which can only mean one thing. You are crushing on her!”

  Poseidon stared at him in consternation. Could he be right? He turned to gaze after Thetis. Her scales were barely visible now, but he could find anyone in the sea no matter where they went. He ruled it! Did he want to go after her? His heart said that he did.

  He made a move to do just that, but then paused to look back at Delphinius. “Thanks, buddy. You know me better than I know myself sometimes. Glad you were on my team!” Then he added, “Why don’t you come up to MOA next week? I’ll show you around the place.”

  Delphinius’s face lit up as bright as a constellation. “Really? That’d be awesome! Yeah.”

  “Talk later, then,” said Poseidon, grinning. “I’m off to catch up with Thetis.”

  Within minutes, he was swimming alongside her under the sea. Surprised to see him, she let out a trill of bubbles and surfaced. They stared at each other, treading water.

  “What’s up?” she asked him. “I didn’t expect to see you again so soon.”

  “I just wanted to say I’m sorry,” he blurted. “I got off on the wrong foot, er, fin with you. You see, there was this Oracle-O cookie fortune back at MOA before the games began and . . . well, never mind. I’m just sorry I wasn’t nicer from the beginning. Okay, Thetis?”

  “Oh,” she said, looking a little guilty all of a sudden. “I have something to tell you, too. Um . . . I’m not Thetis.” She shot him an anxious look. “I’m actually her twin sister, Amphitrite.”

  His jaw dropped. Th
en he just couldn’t help it. He started laughing.

  “What’s so funny?” she asked, frowning at him as her arms swept back and forth in the water.

  Finally, he told her about the Oracle-O cookie and how he’d almost invited her—the real Amphitrite—to join his team instead of Thetis. “The cookie said Thetis could outshine me, so when I thought you were her, I was worried you’d try to outdo me somehow.”

  “No way!” she said, flipping her tailfin so it almost splashed him.

  “Way. But you totally supported me and everyone else. And you were kind of . . . nice. It was mega confusing, let me tell you, Amphitrite,” Poseidon said. Trying out her name for the first time, he decided he liked it.

  Her cheeks turned a little pink. Was it because he’d sort of admitted he liked her? Poseidon wondered.

  “I hope I didn’t hurt anyone or cause trouble by pretending to be Thetis,” she said quickly. “I was only hoping to travel and . . . I wanted to pretend to be this adventurous, amazing, shape-shifting person for a while. The kind of person Zeus might invite to go to MOA. Someone like Thetis, who really is pretty fizztastic. Only she has no interest in leaving the sea, so we made a deal. I came to the games in her place.”

  They’d drifted to a rock sticking up from the sea, and she grabbed onto it so they could talk more easily. “I’m sorry about the temple prize,” she said softly. “I know how much you wanted it.”

  Poseidon smiled wryly, grabbing the other side of the rock. “Pretty obvious, huh?” Then he sighed. “I thought winning a temple would prove my worth, but maybe that was kind of lame.” His gaze caught hers, turquoise meeting turquoise. “You may have pretended to be someone you’re not, but in a way, I was too, I guess. Pretending to be secure and confident when I don’t really feel that way. It was stupid to feel threatened by a dumb Oracle-O cookie.”

  “You have a good heart,” she said earnestly. “I really believe that. You did the right thing, helping Heracles end the battle.”

  He looked out to sea, then back at her, nodding. “It wasn’t easy to congratulate Athena, though. I really did want my own temple. And I didn’t get it. That’s kind of hard to take, but I’ll get over it.”

  Thetis, no, Amphitrite considered him, appearing to weigh something in her mind. Then, seeming to reach some decision, she said, “Come with me, okay?”

  Turning, she sped off in the direction of the Undersea. After a moment’s hesitation, he followed, and the two of them swam side by side.

  “Where are we going?” he asked, bubbles streaming off behind them as he spoke.

  “You’ll see,” she told him, her eyes sparkling.

  13

  Surprise!

  Amphitrite

  AN HOUR LATER, THEY SAW it glistening ahead deep underwater. A magnificent palace of gleaming gold.

  “There it is,” Amphitrite told Poseidon, pointing. “What I brought you to see.”

  His eyes widened in wonder. “What is this place?” he asked, moving closer to examine it. “It’s amazing! I’m god of the sea. Why didn’t I know about it?”

  “Because it’s a surprise. For you,” she told him. “Makes sense your temple would be under the sea, right?”

  “A temple? For me?” he repeated, obviously astounded. “But who built it?”

  “Who builds temples?” she said, shrugging as she beamed at him. “An immortal’s fans, of course. In this case all the creatures of the sea. They’ve—we’ve—been building this place for years now. To show you that we of the sea are all behind you. We know you have our backs. That you protect us and are always thinking of our welfare. And we appreciate it.”

  “Whoa,” he said, grinning a little. “I never knew mers thought so highly of me.”

  “We do. But I know you won’t let it go to your head, right?” She laughed, then went on earnestly. “This palace is your temple. It’s a place all sea creatures will be able to gather to celebrate you. And you can meet here to talk sea-business with my dad, and leaders from other watery realms too. It’s not finished yet, but with everyone happily contributing the time and materials they can, it won’t take too much longer.”

  She showed him a mosaic of tiles that depicted him larger than life, riding three hippocampi through tumultuous waves, his trident raised high in battle. “Last year, all my sisters and I made this mosaic from bits of shells we collected.”

  He smiled at it in genuine delight. “It’s perfect. Totally perfect.”

  “That carving Zeus said you won in the Temple Games would look great right next to it,” she added. They explored the palace a little more, discussing and admiring various features.

  Then, tossing his blond hair out of his eyes with flick of his head, Poseidon smiled at her through the water. He had the best smile ever! she thought.

  “So about coming to school at MOA,” he said. “If you really want to, I’ll support your request. And I think Athena will, too. We have pull with the big guy. Principal Zeus, I mean.”

  Amphitrite’s eyes went wide, a thrill shooting through her. She’d already decided she was going to face her dad with the truth about her love of land. If Principal Zeus did invite her to attend MOA, she knew her dad wouldn’t refuse the honor. And that would be so great!

  “I do want to go to MOA,” she assured Poseidon, nodding. “More than anything.”

  After they explored the palace for a while longer, they said their good-byes and swam off, him to MOA and her to the Undersea. Feeling fintastically happy, Amphitrite sped like an arrow through the water. She had fifty tiny gifts to deliver. Well, forty-nine.

  She touched the lustrous pearl that dangled from the sea-grass necklace Poseidon had made for her and which now encircled her throat. As long as she had the pearl, she’d be safe on land or in the sea for any length of time. She could choose where to go, what to do, and who to be. And the very best part was that her sisters would soon be able to do the same. Once they had the legendary magical pearls in their possession, she wouldn’t have to worry about them getting landsick ever again.

  With a flip of her fin, Amphitrite dove even deeper into the blue waters of the Aegean, heading for home with the greatest gift ever close to her heart. The gift of hope—hope of an invitation to return as a student at Mount Olympus Academy. Fizzy!

  Don’t miss the next adventure in the Goddess Girls series!

  Coming Soon

  JOAN HOLUB has authored and/or illustrated over 140 children’s books, including the New York Times bestselling picture book Mighty Dads (illustrated by James Dean) and Little Red Writing (illustrated by Melissa Sweet). She lives in North Carolina and at www.joanholub.com.

  SUZANNE WILLIAMS is the author of over fifty books for children, including the award-winning picture book Library Lil (illustrated by Steven Kellogg). She lives outside Seattle, Washington, and is online at www.suzanne-williams.com.

  Together, Joan and Suzanne write the Goddess Girls, Heroes in Training, and Grimmtastic Girls series.

  Aladdin

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  READ ALL THE BOOKS IN THE GODDESS GIRLS SERIES

  ATHENA THE BRAIN

  PERSEPHONE THE PHONY

  APHRODITE THE BEAUTY

  ARTEMIS THE BRAVE

  ATHENA THE WISE

  APHRODITE THE DIVA

  ARTEMIS THE LOYAL

  MEDUSA THE MEAN

  GODDESS GIRLS SUPER SPECIAL:

  THE GIRL GAMES

  PANDORA THE CURIOUS

  PHEME THE GOSSIP

  PERSEPHONE THE DARING

  CASSANDRA THE LUCKY

  ATHENA THE PROUD

  IRIS THE COLORFUL

  APHRODITE THE FAIR

  MEDUSA THE RICH

  COMING SOON:

  HESTIA THE INVISIBLE

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  This book is a work of fiction. Any references to historical events, real people, or real places are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, and events are products of the author’s imagination, and any resemblance to actual events or places or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

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  First Aladdin hardcover edition August 2015

  Text copyright © 2015 by Joan Holub and Suzanne Williams

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  Jacket illustration copyright © 2015 by Glen Hanson

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